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Meet the Founders

Jimmy Tjoeng

Jimmy Tjoeng is the co-founder and Head Roaster of Vacation Coffee. Originally from Bandung, West Java, Indonesia, Jimmy moved to Perth, Australia in 2002 to pursue his studies, completing a Bachelor of Science in Biotechnology and a Bachelor of Commerce in Management, with a minor in Human Resources.

After graduating, he relocated to Melbourne for work and quickly immersed himself in the city’s renowned coffee culture. Having grown up drinking coffee from the age of 10, it wasn’t long before he began his professional journey in the industry. He gained valuable experience with CoffeeHQ, Sensory Lab, and Pillar of Salt, while also connecting with respected figures such as Peter Wolff and Craig Simon. This period played a key role in shaping his approach to coffee before he opened his first café, Little Chloe Café & Roaster, in 2012.

In 2016, Jimmy partnered with Kael and Matt Sahely to launch Vacation Coffee. The team opened their first brick-and-mortar café — the iconic Vacation Café on the corner of Exhibition Street and Flinders Street — in August 2017. Today, Jimmy leads the roastery as Head Roaster and Operations Lead, continuing to shape the brand’s quality, consistency, and direction.

 

Matthew Sahely

Matthew “Matt” Sahely is an Melbourne café founder and hospitality entrepreneur best known for co-founding Vacation Coffee with his brother Kael Sahely and Jimmy Tjoeng. Together they launched Vacation in 2016 as a specialty coffee roastery and opened the flagship Vacation Café in Melbourne’s CBD in 2017, blending quality coffee with a relaxed, inviting atmosphere.

Before Vacation Coffee, Matt and Kael built a strong presence in Melbourne’s café scene with successful venues including Pillar of Salt, Touchwood, Bawa, and Barry — neighbourhood favourites that helped shape the city’s vibrant coffee and brunch culture.

Matt’s work in hospitality focuses on thoughtful café concepts that prioritise great coffee, warm service, and community-centric spaces, contributing to Melbourne’s reputation as one of the world’s great café cities.

Nowadays, he spends time with his two beautiful kids or managing Vacation Richmond and Cremorne.

 

Kael Sahely

Kael Sahely is an Australian café founder and hospitality entrepreneur best known as one of the co-founders of Vacation Coffee, a lively specialty coffee roastery and café brand in Melbourne. Alongside his brother Matt Sahely and Jimmy Tjoeng, Kael helped launch Vacation in 2016 as a wholesale roastery before opening the flagship Vacation Café at the corner of Exhibition and Flinders Streets in 2017, famous for its relaxed, holiday-inspired vibe and quality coffee.

Prior to Vacation, Kael and Matt established a strong reputation in Melbourne’s café scene with successful openings such as Pillar of Salt, Touchwood, Bawa, and Barry — beloved neighbourhood spots that helped shape the city’s breakfast and brunch culture.

Kael’s work focuses on creating welcoming, well-designed cafés that balance excellent coffee and food with approachable, everyday experiences, making specialty coffee inviting for a broad audience.

Currently, he’s more into surfing or managing multiple venues like St. Pauls General Store, Nora’s Pizza House in Sorrento, or Neighborhood Pizza in Armadale.